WoW Forever Arcane Mage Leveling Guide

ROUTELevel-by-level route

1. 5

   Levels 1–5

   Get a wand first

   • Equip Novice's Practice Wand right away, then swap to Lesser Magic Wand at 5 and Greater Magic Wand at 13. You make all of them yourself with Enchanting.
   • Pull from range with Fireball, then finish with your wand. It has great base damage and a long reach, which makes it the most consistent opener.
   • Pick up Tailoring and Enchanting now. Crafted gear is the easiest way to stack Intellect, Spell Power and Spirit.
   • From level 4, conjure your own drinks with Conjure Water.

   Gear to pick up

   • 
     Novice's Practice WandCraft

     Made with Enchanting
   • 
     Lesser Magic WandCraftLv 5

     Made with Enchanting

   New abilities

   • Frost Armor1
   • Fireball1
   • Arcane Intellect1
   • Frostbolt4
   • Conjure Water4
2. 9

   Levels 6–9

   Hunt on a mana budget

   • Arcane Missiles arrives at 8 but costs a lot of mana. Until its second rank at 16, finishing with your wand does more damage.
   • From 6, read the scrolls you find while leveling with Comprehend Scroll. They unlock strong abilities and buffs.

   New abilities

   • Fire Blast6
   • Conjure Food6
   • Comprehend Scroll6
   • Study6
   • Arcane Missiles8
   • Polymorph8

   Rank upgrades

   Fireball 2 (6) · Frostbolt 2 (8)

3. 12

   Levels 10–12

   Talents and first crafted gear

   • Max Wand Specialization at 10–11 to boost your wand damage, then start Arcane Focus at 12 for Arcane spell hit chance.
   • When enemies are hitting you, use Frost Nova (level 10) freely to take fewer hits.
   • Craft Novice Arcanist's Sash (10) and Heavy Woolen Gloves (12) with Tailoring. The recipe for Pearly Boots (12) is bought with Merchant's Favor, earned by turning in supply crates.

   Gear to pick up

   • 
     Novice Arcanist's SashCraftLv 10

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Heavy Woolen GlovesCraftLv 12

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Pearly BootsCraftLv 12

     Made with Tailoring

     Recipe bought with Merchant's Favor

   Talents

   • Lv 10–11Wand Specialization2/2
   • Lv 12Arcane Focus1/5

   New abilities

   • Frost Nova10
   • Dampen Magic12
   • Slow Fall12

   Rank upgrades

   Frost Armor 2 (10) · Conjure Water 2 (10) · Fireball 3 (12) · Conjure Food 2 (12)

4. 16

   Levels 13–16

   Into the dungeons

   • At 13, upgrade your wand to Greater Magic Wand.
   • The Hall of Thanes and Ragefire Chasm open at 13, Ruins of Lordaeron at 15 and The Deadmines at 16. Grab their quests for the rewards too.
   • Arcane Explosion (14) hits hard for little mana — spam it while the tank holds a pack. Arcane Subtlety at 15–16 lowers the threat of your Arcane spells, so you can spam it more freely.
   • On small packs of 1–2, wand while you regain mana, then spend it on the big 4–5 mob packs.
   • At 15 craft Filigreed Pearly Gown (Arcane spell power) and Red Woolen Boots, plus Pearly Gloves with Merchant's Favor, then Heavy Woolen Cloak at 16.

   Gear to pick up

   • 
     Greater Magic WandCraftLv 13

     Made with Enchanting
   • 
     Filigreed Pearly GownCraftLv 15

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Red Woolen BootsCraftLv 15

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Pearly GlovesCraftLv 15

     Made with Tailoring

     Recipe bought with Merchant's Favor
   • 
     Heavy Woolen CloakCraftLv 16

     Made with Tailoring

   Talents

   • Lv 13–14Arcane Focus3/5
   • Lv 15–16Arcane Subtlety2/2

   New abilities

   • Arcane Explosion14
   • Flamestrike16

   Rank upgrades

   Frostbolt 3 (14) · Fire Blast 2 (14) · Arcane Intellect 2 (14) · Arcane Missiles 2 (16)

   Dungeons for this range

   • Ragefire Chasm13
   • The Hall of Thanes13–18
   • Ruins of Lordaeron15–20
   • The Deadmines16
5. 19

   Levels 17–19

   Gearing up in dungeons

   • Wailing Caverns opens at 17 and Shadowfang Keep at 18.
   • Arcane Concentration at 17–19 gives your damage spells a chance to make your next damage spell cost no mana.
   • Craft Heavy Woolen Pants and Double-Stitched Woolen Shoulders (17), then Reinforced Woolen Shoulders (19) with Tailoring.
   • With Merchant's Favor, also make Pearly Sash (17).
   • Prioritize gear with Intellect, Spell Power and Spirit — it matters most in dungeons.

   Gear to pick up

   • 
     Heavy Woolen PantsCraftLv 17

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Double-Stitched Woolen ShouldersCraftLv 17

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Pearly SashCraftLv 17

     Made with Tailoring

     Recipe bought with Merchant's Favor
   • 
     Reinforced Woolen ShouldersCraftLv 19

     Made with Tailoring

   Talents

   • Lv 17–19Arcane Concentration3/5

   New abilities

   • Amplify Magic18
   • Remove Lesser Curse18

   Rank upgrades

   Fireball 4 (18)

   Dungeons for this range

   • Wailing Caverns17
   • Shadowfang Keep18
6. 20

   Level 20

   Level 20: farm dungeons

   • Take Arcane Blast at 20. Four stacks drain your mana fast, so stop at 2–3 and follow with Arcane Missiles.
   • Use Evocation (level 20) often between bosses — several small uses beat none.
   • Collect the target gear below from bosses and quests in The Hall of Thanes, Ragefire Chasm, Ruins of Lordaeron, The Deadmines, Wailing Caverns and Shadowfang Keep.
   • Finish Tailoring with Spidersilk Boots and Filigreed Pearly Leggings, and spend Merchant's Favor on Pearly Circlet.
   • For your wand, aim for Sizzle Stick (Wailing Caverns quest reward), which has the most Spell Power.

   Gear to pick up

   • 
     Spidersilk BootsCraftLv 20

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Filigreed Pearly LeggingsCraftLv 20

     Made with Tailoring
   • 
     Pearly CircletCraftLv 20

     Made with Tailoring

     Recipe bought with Merchant's Favor
   • 
     Sizzle StickQuest

     Wailing Caverns · Reward from Deviate Eradication

   Talents

   • Lv 20Arcane Blast1/1

   Open this build in the calculator →

   New abilities

   • Blizzard20
   • Ice Lance20
   • Fire Ward20
   • Pyroblast20
   • Blink20
   • Evocation20
   • Mana Shield20
   • Teleport: Ironforge20
   • Teleport: Orgrimmar20
   • Teleport: Stormwind20
   • Teleport: Undercity20
   • Arcane Blast20

   Rank upgrades

   Frost Armor 3 (20) · Frostbolt 4 (20) · Conjure Water 3 (20) · Polymorph 2 (20)

ROTATIONHow to fight

1. 1Pull from range with Fireball.
2. 2Stack Arcane Blast 2–3 times, then cast Arcane Missiles. More stacks cost more mana.
3. 3Going to 4 stacks before Arcane Missiles hits hard but empties nearly your whole mana pool in two cycles.
4. 4To save mana, just use your wand. It nearly matches casting only Arcane Missiles, and you regain mana meanwhile.
5. 5Multiple enemies: pre-cast Flamestrike (costs a lot of mana), then spam Arcane Explosion.

GEARLevel-20 target gear

Dungeon drops, quest rewards and crafted items worth chasing at level 20 for this spec, by slot, best stats for the spec first.